Political Blotter » California State Senatehttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics
Politics in the Bay Area and beyondTue, 31 Mar 2015 18:49:04 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1Muslim group plans Sacramento lobbying blitzhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/27/muslim-group-plans-sacramento-lobbying-blitz/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/27/muslim-group-plans-sacramento-lobbying-blitz/#commentsFri, 27 Mar 2015 20:59:24 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29269A Muslim civil liberties and advocacy group will focus its California lobbying blitz next month on bills dealing with police surveillance, equal pay for women, and a freeze on tuition at state colleges and universities. The California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is planning its 4th annual California Muslim Day at the [...]]]>

A Muslim civil liberties and advocacy group will focus its California lobbying blitz next month on bills dealing with police surveillance, equal pay for women, and a freeze on tuition at state colleges and universities.

SB 178, the California Electronic Communication Privacy Act by state Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, would provide protection against warrantless government access private electronic communications such as emails, text messages and GPS data that are held on smartphones, tablets, laptops and other digital devices. Police would have to go to a judge and get a warrant before accessing such information.

SB 358, the California Fair Pay Act by state Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, would will help to ensure that women are paid equally when they do the same work as men, and protect workers from retaliation when they inquire or speak out about wage differences at work. CAIR notes that in 2013, a California woman working full-time earned 84 cents to every dollar earned by a man doing the same job; the gap is considerably wider for women of color.

AB 42 by Assemblywoman Young Kim, D-Fullerton, would require the California Community Colleges and California State University – and ask the University of California – to freeze tuition and fees at their 2014-15 levels while the tax hikes enacted by voters as Proposition 30 of 2012 remain in effect.

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/27/muslim-group-plans-sacramento-lobbying-blitz/feed/3CAIRCalifornialogoCalifornia lawmakers globe-trot to Cuba, Japanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/27/california-lawmakers-globe-trot-to-cuba-japan/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/27/california-lawmakers-globe-trot-to-cuba-japan/#commentsFri, 27 Mar 2015 18:37:34 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29263With the Legislature in recess next week, California’s top lawmakers – and a few Bay Area members, too – are leaving Sacramento to do some globe-trotting. Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, and Agriculture Committee Chair Henry Perea, D-Fresno, will lead a trade delegation of legislators, academics, and agriculture industry representatives to Cuba from Monday, [...]]]>

With the Legislature in recess next week, California’s top lawmakers – and a few Bay Area members, too – are leaving Sacramento to do some globe-trotting.

Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, and Agriculture Committee Chair Henry Perea, D-Fresno, will lead a trade delegation of legislators, academics, and agriculture industry representatives to Cuba from Monday, March 30 to Friday, April 3.

They’re aiming to build ties with Cuban policymakers, farmers, and businesses, and to explore options for California and Cuba to collaborate not only in agriculture but also in telecommunications, construction and banking.

“With the federal government moving forward with efforts to normalize diplomatic, economic, and commercial relations, it is important for California to also engage with Cuba and expand economic relationships that create new opportunities for businesses in our state,” Atkins said in a news release. “The Assembly wants to do everything we can to create more jobs and business in California, and this trade delegation is one way to help California companies gain a competitive edge.”

The partner organization for the trade delegation is Californians Building Bridges, a nonprofit with years of experience leading cultural, humanitarian and entrepreneurial exchanges between California and Cuba. No Assembly funds are being spent.

Meanwhile, state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, will lead a delegation including Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar, to Japan from Monday, March 30 through Thursday, April 2. Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, is going, too.

The lawmakers were invited by the Japanese government, and they’ll be discussing issues including transportation, seismic safety, clean energy, environmental protection and climate change.

They’re scheduled to meet Monday in Tokyo with U.S. Embassy officials and Japanese officials including Issei Kitagawa, the state minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transportation and Tourism to discuss high-speed rail. They’ll also meet that day with people from Japan’s Reconstruction Agency, the main entity responsible for recovery from the March 2011 earthquake that devastated part of the nation.

On Tuesday, they’re scheduled to visit Japan’s National Diet, the legislature, as well as to tour the High Speed Rail Operation Center and to ride in a new fuel-cell car produced by Toyota.

On Wednesday they’ll travel to Kobe to meet with the mayor and tour a facility memorializing the January 1995 earthquake that killed more than 5,000 and destroyed tens of thousands of homes, and the recovery efforts that followed. And on Thursday they’ll start in Osaka and then head for Kyoto, to meet the mayor for a briefing on the city’s economy and history.

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/27/california-lawmakers-globe-trot-to-cuba-japan/feed/1Toni AtkinsKevin de LeonBill would provide funds for ‘mystery goo’ cleanupshttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/23/bill-would-provide-funds-for-mystery-goo-cleanups/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/23/bill-would-provide-funds-for-mystery-goo-cleanups/#commentsMon, 23 Mar 2015 07:03:04 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29233A new bill would provide state funding to clean up incidents like the “mystery goo” in the San Francisco Bay that recently killed more than 200 birds. State Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, said SB 718 – jointly authored by state Sen. Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley – fixes a gap in existing law by creating a [...]]]>

A new bill would provide state funding to clean up incidents like the “mystery goo” in the San Francisco Bay that recently killed more than 200 birds.

State Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, said SB 718 – jointly authored by state Sen. Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley – fixes a gap in existing law by creating a funding mechanism for wildlife rescue and rehabilitation during such rare events.

“California has a sophisticated oil spill response system, but in the unique event when a pollutant is unidentified, there is no clear funding mechanism for the cleanup,” Leno said in a news release. “This legislation clarifies that the state’s top priority during a spill of any kind is to immediately protect waterways and wildlife, regardless of what type of substance caused the problem.”

The bill authorizes the Office of Spill Prevention and Response to borrow up to $500,000 from the state’s oil spill prevention fund for the rehabilitation and rescue of wildlife in spill events where the substance is non-petroleum based. The bill gives the state clear authority to quickly respond to these events; once the responsible parties for the spills are found, they would be required to reimburse the state for the costs of cleanup, including accrued interest.

“When a spill happens, it is essential that first responders can act quickly to protect sensitive shorelines and species,” said Sejal Choksi-Chugh, San Francisco Baykeeper’s interim executive director. “This bill will help ensure that state, local and nonprofit responders are working in concert — and with adequate resources — to prevent harm to San Francisco Bay and all of California’s waters.”

An unidentified sticky synthetic goo first appeared in the Bay in mid-January and coated hundreds of birds, many of which died because they could not maintain their body heat. Others were rehabilitated and released back into the wild by volunteers from local non-profit organizations. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife investigated the incident, but no significant state resources were available to support non-governmental agencies in their cleanup, rescue and rehabilitation efforts. The International Bird Rescue center, a publicly supported non-profit group, spent about $150,000 on animal care.

No word on whether future mystery-goo cleanups would involve the Ghostbusters:

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/23/bill-would-provide-funds-for-mystery-goo-cleanups/feed/0EAST BAY BIRD RESCUEBay Area House members out and about Fridayhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/19/bay-area-house-members-out-and-about-friday/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/19/bay-area-house-members-out-and-about-friday/#commentsThu, 19 Mar 2015 21:10:18 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29215Bay Area House members have a bunch of events planned for Friday. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, will take part in a discussion with employers of the benefits of hiring trained ex-convicts at 9 a.m. Friday in the student lounge in Building R of Merritt College, 12500 Campus Dr. in Oakland. Others expected to take part [...]]]>

Bay Area House members have a bunch of events planned for Friday.

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, will take part in a discussion with employers of the benefits of hiring trained ex-convicts at 9 a.m. Friday in the student lounge in Building R of Merritt College, 12500 Campus Dr. in Oakland. Others expected to take part include California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Secretary Jeff Beard; California Prison Industry Authority General Manager Charles Pattillo; Alameda County Supervisor Richard Valle; Alameda County Assistant Sheriff Brett Keteles; and PWC Development President Prophet Walker, himself a former offender.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose, will hold a forum to update the community about President Obama’s executive actions on immigration at 4 p.m. Friday at the School of Arts and Culture in Mexican Heritage Plaza, 1700 Alum Rock Ave. in San Jose. The event also offers eligibility workshops to prepare families to apply for relief from deportation pending availability of applications this year. Lofgren, Lofgren, the Immigration and Border Security subcommittee’s ranking Democrat, will be joined by Rep. Luiz Gutiérrez, D-Ill.; Assemblywoman Nora Campos, D-San Jose; San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo; Santa Clara County supervisors Dave Cortese and Cindy Chavez; and Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen.

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/19/bay-area-house-members-out-and-about-friday/feed/2Barbara Lee (Dec-2010)Mark DeSaulnierSD7: Joan Buchanan endorses Susan Bonillahttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/18/sd7-joan-buchanan-endorses-susan-bonilla/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/18/sd7-joan-buchanan-endorses-susan-bonilla/#commentsWed, 18 Mar 2015 22:00:45 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29197Former Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan, who came in third in yesterday’s 7th State Senate District special primary election, emailed supporters Wednesday afternoon with a plea to vote for Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla in the May 19 general election. “While last night’s results weren’t what we were expecting, I am incredibly grateful to all of you for believing [...]]]>

“While last night’s results weren’t what we were expecting, I am incredibly grateful to all of you for believing in me, your time and all your hard work,” wrote Buchanan, an Alamo Democrat who was term-limited out of the 16th Assembly District seat last year.

“I’m proud of the campaign that we ran; I’m proud that we stuck to our pledge to run a positive-only campaign; and I’m proud of how many of you truly took to heart our shared vision for a better future,” she wrote. “It’s clear that our positive messages of a quality education for every child, protecting our precious environment and creating a better California resounded with tens of thousands of voters.”

With some mail-in ballots yet to be counted, current results show Buchanan got 22.6 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s top-two primary, finishing third behind Orinda Mayor Steve Glazer (32.8 percent) and Bonilla (24.9 percent); Glazer and Bonilla will face off in May, while Buchanan and two others are now eliminated.

Buchanan wrote that she called Bonilla, D-Concord, on Tuesday night to offer congratulations. “I ask you to support her bid to be our next State Senator,” she wrote.

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/18/sd7-joan-buchanan-endorses-susan-bonilla/feed/9SD7: Looks like May will be a nail-biterhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/18/sd7-looks-like-may-will-be-a-nail-biter/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/18/sd7-looks-like-may-will-be-a-nail-biter/#commentsWed, 18 Mar 2015 17:42:53 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29180Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla should be starting to sweat right about now. My colleague Matt Artz has the lowdown on yesterday’s 7th State Senate District special primary election. As of Wednesday morning, with some mail-in ballots still to be counted, Orinda Mayor Steve Glazer – the centrist Democrat in this race, backed by entities including the [...]]]>

Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla should be starting to sweat right about now.

My colleague Matt Artz has the lowdown on yesterday’s 7th State Senate District special primary election. As of Wednesday morning, with some mail-in ballots still to be counted, Orinda Mayor Steve Glazer – the centrist Democrat in this race, backed by entities including the California Chamber of Commerce – topped the list at 32.8 percent, while Bonilla, D-Concord – a more liberal candidate with strong union backing – came in second at 24.9 percent.

They’ll go on to the special general election on May 19. Eliminated in yesterday’s primary were former Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan, D-Alamo, at 22.6 percent; Michaela Hertle, a Republican businesswoman from Pleasanton who dropped out Feb. 2 and endorsed Glazer, at 17 percent; and Concord Democrat Terry Kremin, who barely campaigned at all, at 2.8 percent.

But yesterday’s numbers show a surprisingly tough road ahead for Bonilla. If you figure those who voted for Hertle will now swing toward Glazer, that puts him close to the 50 percent mark. And while it’s hard to imagine many Hertle voters suddenly swinging all the way across the spectrum to support Bonilla, it’s easier to imagine some Buchanan voters choosing Glazer, which could put him over the top.

Democrats hold a 15-point registration edge in this district, but the party’s leftward edge is blunted in low-turnout elections – of which this certainly was one.

With 97,104 votes counted so far and an estimated 13,432 ballots still left to count as of Wednesday morning, it seems that about 110,536 voters actually bothered to turn out for this special primary. In a district with 488,596 voters, that’s an abysmal 22.6 percent turnout. Maybe that will improve in May’s general election, but I wouldn’t count on it.

And Glazer can almost certainly count on more support from his own deep-pocketed independent spenders, most notable the Chamber of Commerce’s JobsPAC and southern California Republican-turned-independent businessman Bill Bloomfield.

If 7th District residents think they’ve been inundated with mail and calls so far, they ain’t seen nothing yet.

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/18/sd7-looks-like-may-will-be-a-nail-biter/feed/4Steve GlazerSusan BonillaGOP senators demand hearing on firearms programhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/17/gop-senators-demand-hearing-on-firearms-program/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/17/gop-senators-demand-hearing-on-firearms-program/#commentsWed, 18 Mar 2015 00:10:43 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29175California State Senate Republicans want to know why Attorney General Kamala Harris hasn’t cracked down harder on convicts and mentally ill people with guns – but Harris’ office says it’s making progress and can’t do the task overnight. The GOP caucus wrote a letter to Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León on Tuesday to [...]]]>

The GOP caucus wrote a letter to Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León on Tuesday to request an oversight hearing on why the state still has a huge backlog in its Armed and Prohibited Persons program (APPS), a database that cross-references California firearm owners with domestic violence restraining orders, mental health records and criminal histories to identify people who can’t legally own firearms.

But 3,922 names were cleared from the database due to warrants being cleared, restraining orders being vacated by judges, or deaths, and 6,879 more names were cleared after investigation. Harris reported her agents investigated 7,573 cases, resulting in the seizure of 3,286 firearms and 137 arrests.

That still leaves 17,479 prohibited persons on the list, holding up to about 35,000 firearms and 1,419 assault weapons, Harris’ report said.

Lawmakers passed and Gov. Jerry Brown in May 2013 signed SB 140, authorizing $24 million more for the state Justice Department to put toward APPS over the following three years. Harris said in a news release at the time that this would 36 more agents for the program, which she and staffers said was a high priority. But Republicans say only half that many have been hired so far.

Now the GOP lawmakers want a joint oversight hearing by the Senate Public Safety Committee and the relevant budget subcommittee to review the APPS program. Specifically, they want to know how 40 percent of the SB 140 money was spent without hiring all the staff needed to erase the backlog; Harris’ plan for future spending to actually erase the backlog; and why Harris’ report left out information – which they say is required under SB 140 – regarding the breakdown of why each person in the APPS is prohibited from having a firearm.

Kristin Ford, Harris’ press secretary, responded Tuesday that “removing guns from dangerous, violent individuals who are prohibited by law from owning them has been a top priority of the California Department of Justice.”

“Upon taking office Attorney General Harris hired agents and urged the legislature to fund efforts to eliminate a backlog that was created ten years ago,” Ford said. “This funding has allowed agents to reduce the backlog for the first time in the program’s history and doubled the average number of guns seized per year.”

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/17/gop-senators-demand-hearing-on-firearms-program/feed/3Dianne Feinstein endorses CA’s assisted-suicide billhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/17/dianne-feinstein-endorses-cas-assisted-suicide-bill/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/17/dianne-feinstein-endorses-cas-assisted-suicide-bill/#commentsTue, 17 Mar 2015 20:48:46 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29169U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein has endorsed California’s assisted-suicide bill. “The right to die with dignity is an option that should be available for every chronically suffering terminally ill consenting adult in California,” Feinstein, D-Calif., wrote in a letter to the authors of SB 128, the End of Life Option Act. “I share your concern that [...]]]>

“The right to die with dignity is an option that should be available for every chronically suffering terminally ill consenting adult in California,” Feinstein, D-Calif., wrote in a letter to the authors of SB 128, the End of Life Option Act. “I share your concern that terminally ill California residents currently do not have the option to obtain end-of-life medication if their suffering becomes unbearable.”

State Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis, one of the bill’s authors, said Feinstein’s support “is a big boost for our effort, sending a strong signal that the political momentum has shifted. When one of California’s most respected, thoughtful, and longest serving political leaders takes the unusual step of speaking out in strong support of a bill like this you know you are on the right track.”

The bill’s other authors are state Sen. Bill Monning, D-Carmel, and Assemblywoman Susan Talamantes Eggman, D-Stockton. They released a list Tuesday of 70 current and former lawmakers who support the legislation, including 19 current lawmakers who have signed on as co-authors.

SB 128, modeled on Oregon’s law, will have its first hearing next Wednesday, March 25 in the Senate Health Committee. The bill would let a terminally ill competent person get a prescription for drugs to hasten and make painless his or her death. The authors say it has “numerous protections to prevent abuse” and “all participation is voluntary;” they note Oregon’s law has been in place for 17 years with no reported cases of abuse. Last year, 155 Oregonians used the law to help end their lives.

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/17/dianne-feinstein-endorses-cas-assisted-suicide-bill/feed/4Dianne Feinstein (2012)SD7: Money & endorsements as endgame nearshttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/11/sd7-money-endorsements-as-endgame-nears/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/11/sd7-money-endorsements-as-endgame-nears/#commentsWed, 11 Mar 2015 22:07:17 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29115Independent spending has continued to run amok in the all-Democrat 7th State Senate District special election since I last updated the tsunami Friday. To recap, unions are spending big for Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla, D-Concord, and against Orinda Mayor Steve Glazer – though Glazer has his own deep-pocketed, anti-union benefactors. Former Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan looks to [...]]]>

To recap, unions are spending big for Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla, D-Concord, and against Orinda Mayor Steve Glazer – though Glazer has his own deep-pocketed, anti-union benefactors. Former Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan looks to be caught in the crossfire, and former Concord City Council candidate Terry Kremin remains beneath the radar.

Mailers are flooding the district’s mailboxes, often several a day, as the candidates plan get-out-the-vote efforts like precinct-walking and phone-banking for the campaign’s final days.

The grand total: $2,014,619. And that, of course, doesn’t include the $669,000 the three candidates had spent as of Feb. 28 – a figure that will surely rise in these final weeks before next Tuesday’s special primary.

Buchanan’s campaign bankroll includes $75,000 that she loaned out of her own pocket on Feb. 28 – about 26 percent of what her campaign has collected this year.

There’s been no movement yet on the federal trademark-infringement lawsuit that the California Republican Party filed last week against the Asian American Small Business PAC. As previously reported here, the PAC – which almost always supports Asian American Democrats – has been using union money to buy fliers on behalf of Michaela Hertle, the Pleasanton Republican who quit the race Feb. 2 and endorsed Glazer. Hertle and the state GOP contend unions are funneling money through the PAC to produce mailers urging Republicans to vote for Hertle, thereby sapping votes from Glazer.

The party complains the PAC used its elephant logo without permission; party vice chairwoman and attorney Harmeet Dhillon said Wednesday she has not yet been able to serve the committee with the complaint, but she’s sending its officers and vendors letters warning them to preserve evidence for the case.

In other news, Bonilla has continued to rack up significant endorsements in the past few weeks, including those of the California Labor Federation and former Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez. Miller called her “a proven leader who has delivered balanced budgets, improved our schools, fought to protect the Delta, and created new opportunities for middle-class families.”

]]>http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/11/sd7-money-endorsements-as-endgame-nears/feed/4Sandra Fluke to direct liberal group’s CA officehttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/04/sandra-fluke-to-direct-liberal-groups-ca-office/
http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2015/03/04/sandra-fluke-to-direct-liberal-groups-ca-office/#commentsWed, 04 Mar 2015 20:58:20 +0000Josh Richmanhttp://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/?p=29084Sandra Fluke – the Los Angeles attorney who came to national prominence in 2012 as Rush Limbaugh called her a “slut” and a “prostitute” after her testimony to House Democrats on Obamacare’s contraception mandates – has a new job. Fluke, 33, who ran unsuccessfully last year in the 26th State Senate District, will head the [...]]]>

Sandra Fluke – the Los Angeles attorney who came to national prominence in 2012 as Rush Limbaugh called her a “slut” and a “prostitute” after her testimony to House Democrats on Obamacare’s contraception mandates – has a new job.

Fluke, 33, who ran unsuccessfully last year in the 26th State Senate District, will head the new California office of Voices for Progress, a national liberal advocacy group. She said the group recognizes that “as the world’s seventh largest economy, California can provide a model for the states, the federal government, and even other countries.

“We must transition to an environmentally sustainable economy, ensure that economic opportunity is shared by all, and guarantee that all have a voice in our democracy,” she said. “I look forward to working with Voices members, industry and labor leaders, the advocacy community, and our elected officials to ensure that California consistently leads in these areas and in shaping federal policy as well.”

Voices for Progress since 2010 has been working on issues such as ending filibuster abuse that halted judicial confirmations in the Senate; reducing income inequality; and combating climate change, including opposing the Keystone XL pipeline. The group’s prominent California members include Democratic activists and fundraisers such as Quinn Delaney and Wayne Jordan of Piedmont and Wade and Lorna Randlett of San Francisco.

“With Sandra’s great leadership, we will be able to increase this federal work while we also help California continue its leadership on climate, and restore its past leadership in providing a first-rate education and economic opportunity,” said Voices for Progress founder and president Sandy Newman.